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Many members of the Kaiserslautern Military Community have found temporary or even permanent homes in one of the many villages and towns surrounding Kaiserslautern in the heart of Rheinland-Pfalz. You may already be familiar with your immediate vicinity, but there is much more to explore and experience at your “home away from home”.
State of the Art is a series introducing Germany as a whole, but also highlighting an individual state or “Bundesland” every month.
After the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989, both German countries reunited in 1990. The Federal Republic of Germany (West Germany) included 11 states and Berlin, in its geographically isolated location. The German Democratic Republic was comprised of five states and today’s Germany has a total of 16 “Bundesländer.”
After reunification Berlin again became the capital and the seat of the Federal Parliament (Bundestag) and the representative body of the states (Bundesrat). Olaf Scholz of the majority Social Democratic Party (SPD) is the elected Federal Chancellor of the country with 84 million inhabitants.
This month’s feature will lead us to the City State of Hamburg and Schleswig-Holstein, Germany’s northern most state.
Gateway to the World
The “Freie und Hansestadt Hamburg” (Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg) has been known as the “Tor zur Welt” among seafarers for centuries. It is Germany’s second largest city with 1.85 million inhabitants and is considered to be the seventh largest city in Europe. The greater Hamburg Metropolitan Region has 5.1 million in total. The City State is surrounded by the states of Niedersachsen to the south and Schleswig-Holstein to the north.
Similar to Bremen, it has a Senate, rather than a State Parliament. Peter Tschentscher of the Social Democratic Party has been the First Mayor and Head of the Senate since March 2018. Current Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz held this position from 2011 to 2018 and former Chancellor Angela Merkel was born in Hamburg.
Hanseatic flair
Hamburg had a long history as member of the medieval “Hanseatic League” and “Free Imperial City of the Holy Roman Empire” until 1871, when it lost its sovereignity under Emperor Bismarck.
Hamburg is not a typical sea port, it is located land inwards on the Elbe River as well as the meeting points of the Alster and Bille Rivers, but is considered to be significant due to its historic role. It is Europe’s third largest port after Rotterdam and Antwerp. For centuries Hamburg has been a bustling port with ships that sailed the world, tall tales to go along with it and was nicknamed “Gateway to the World.” Prior to steam engine trains and automobiles this was a starting point for travel to every corner of the world, including emigrants sailing to the new world.
Its century-long role as a leading global trading hub led to Germany’s oldest stock exchange and the world‘s oldest merchant bank “Berenberg Bank” being founded there. Goods such as fine cloth and spices from the Far East, rum, sugar and tobacco from the new world, tea from India, coffee, chocolate and precious wood from South America as well as other merchandise from around the globe have been traded there since the Middle Ages.
Against the tide
During World War II Hamburg was heavily bombed, but many of the historical structures were restored in the post-war years. In 1962 tragedy struck again and an enormous storm flood hit the city. Dikes collapsed, over 300 people died, 20,000 lost their homes and water was up to 3.8 meters high in some districts, while a great part of the port was destroyed. After reconstruction, Hafen City is now one of the most popular tourist destinations and areas such as the the Speicherstadt and the Kontorhausviertel (former warehouse and customs area) were declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2015.
With 2,500 bridges over canals and rivers, Hamburg has the highest number of bridges in Europe and outranks Venice by far. The city is remarkably green with many parks, lakes and rivers for weekend recreation. In view of climate change, Hamburg has initiated a series of roof top garden projects with greenery for all.
Beatlemania
The city is well known for its cultural venues such as the Elbphilharmonie and Laeiszhalle concert halls and a number of renowned theaters and musical shows, such as “Cats” or the “Lion King,” which is performed on an island within the harbor. A popular British band, the Beatles, kick-started its international career in Hamburg’s infamous “Star Club” in 1962.
The city center is around the Innenalster (lake) with cafés, exclusive hotels, a number of museums and a renowned shopping district leading up to the “Jungfernstieg” (maiden walk). The promenade received its name based on times when fancy, young ladies strolled along the lake in hopes of meeting a fine beau to marry. Posh city sections such as Blankenese, Nienstedten and Othmarschen boast luxurious villas of wealthy merchant families and bankers.
Seafarer tales and Störtebeker
This majestic and historic Hanseatic city has so many sights to see that it would fill a whole guide book to describe them. To name a few must-see spots, visit the Landungsbrücken along the harbor, have a “Grog” (hot water with rum) in one of the old-fashioned seafarer pubs with fisher nets that tell tales of the city’s most prominent character Klaus Störtebeker. He made history as a legendary pirate who was decapitated in 1401 and a statue of him is located in Hafen City.
Fish at five in the morning?
Stroll over the famous Fischmarkt starting at 5 a.m. every Sunday, grab a Fischbrötchen or “Steckenfisch” (on a skewer) and listen to a traditional German band in the wee morning hours. Enjoy a harbor cruise passing enormous cargo and luxurious cruise ships or privately owned yachts and sail by fancy Blankenese. Visit one of the maritime museum ships and explore Miniature Wonderland, the largest model train exhibition in Europe.
Climb up the tower of St. Michaelis church, lovingly called “Michel,” or spend a night at the “Reeperbahn” district with nightlife and more. Germany’s most famous police station “David’s Wache” is also located along this road. Another entertainment district with live music clubs is the “Sternschanze” in the city center.
Humorous Hamburg and an anniversary
Hamburg greets up to 111 million tourists a year, 900,000 alone came by ship in 2018, and almost 14 million hotel stays were recorded in 2022, making it one of the most visited cities in Europe. It also ranked very high in a recent quality of living survey. There is also some humor to the city: its licence designation is HH (Hansestadt Hamburg), pronounced as “ha ha” in German.
Hamburg is celebrating its 834th port anniversary from May 5-7 this year with a series of exciting events. For details visit: https://www.hamburg.com/port-anniversary/16795320/activities/ or or more Hanseatic flair: thttps://www.hamburg.com/
Land of wind and between the seas
Our journey continues up north to Schleswig-Holstein, which calls itself the “land of wind and between the seas.” The state is located at the tip of Germany and borders Denmark. The North Sea is located to the West and the Baltic Sea (Germans call it the Ostsee – East Sea) to the East.
Schleswig-Holstein is Germany’s second smallest state after the Saarland with a size of 15,800 square kilometers and 2.9 million inhabitants. It is also a land of dikes, windmills, lighthouses, beach baskets and even more Hanseatic flair. The state capital is Kiel where the state parliament is located and Daniel Günther of the Christian Democratic Party has been the Minister President since June 2017.
Gateway to Scandinavia
Kiel is the largest city with 246,200 inhabitants and is just northeast of Hamburg. The easiest way to get there is by driving through the Elbtunnel underneath the Elbe River and Hamburg. The city is well known for a variety of sailing events, such at the Kieler Woche (Kiel week), the largest regatta in the world held in September. It is also famous for the Kiel Mutiny when sailors refused to board their vessels in protest against Germany’s further involvement in World War I. The Bay of Kiel was the host of the 1936 and and 1972 Summer Olympics for sailing disciplines. Kiel is also home to the German Navy’s Baltic fleet and has evolved into a significant shipbuilding center.
At Norwegen Kai or Schweden Kai you can set sail on a ferry to Norway, Sweden or Lithuania. The port has become a popular stop for large cruise ships heading to the Baltic Sea or transitting the nearby Nord-Ostsee-Kanal (NOK), the busiest artifical waterway in the world.
Kiel has a number of attractions such as the Schifffahrts Museum, the Botanical Gardens and the Nicolai Church. You may enjoy the Kieler Aquarium with salt water fish and animals such as seahorses, small sharks and lion fish. The Bulker Lighthouse is also worth a visit along with a leisure stroll along the Fjord. Fans of mighty ships might enjoy spending time at the Schleusenanlage Kiel-Holtenau, a system with two locks. Sun lovers can relax in the town of Laboe with beaches, shopping in small stores and a Naval Memorial Site.
From East to West on the NOK
Sailing west through the Nord-Ostsee-Kanal, there are interesting sights. The Hochbrücke (high bridge) at Rendsburg was built for trains. Since the bridge over the canal is so high, two circular tracks had to be built to overcome the steep incline where trains can crawl their way up. The view over the canal from the train or the nearby A7 Autobahn bridge is spectacular. The canal also passes by the deepest point in Germany at Wilstermarsch that lies at 3.54 meters (11 feet) under sea level, to reach its destination at the North Sea in Brunsbüttel.
Ferries take passengers to one of the eight islands along the coast, such as Amrum, Pellworm, Föhr, Nordstrand, Helgoland and Germany’s most popular leisure island Sylt.
Helgoland is a unique archipelago with a total size of 1.7 square kilometers and consists of two islands with roughly 1,100 inhabitants. It is about 46 kilometers off the coastline, basically a giant rock in the sea, but also a strategic naval spot, has an airfield and is a duty-free area outside of the 12-mile zone. The island was traded against the island of Zanzibar (near Tanzania) in a treaty with Britain in 1890 and the “Deutschlandlied” (German national anthem) was composed there.
The North Sea is part of the Nature Reserve Wattenmeer (Wadden Sea) and small towns, such as Brunsbüttel, Husum and St. Peter Ording invite you to relax on the beaches, explore the wonders of the Wattenmeer or take a leisure bike tour on one the many dikes and discover small shops with maritime goods. Adventurers might enjoy an overnight stay in a “sleeping beach basket” on one of the sandy beaches.
Baltic Sea and Vikings
There are also a number of spots of interest to visit along the Baltic Sea coast. Lübeck, the second largest city with 219,000 inhabitants is a traditional Hanseatic city. The core of the city is located on an island. Its most famous landmark is the red brick “Holsten Tor,” which was formerly depicted on a D-Mark bill and welcomes visitors to the city center. During the Middle Ages the city played a key role as seafaring hub and is also famous for its Marzipan, a delicacy made of almonds.
Eckernförde is a popular vacation and spa town, with a brilliant blue harbor full of traditional sailboats. It is also home to one of the largest Naval installations and training sites for the German Armed Forces and has a factory where candy is hand-made.
The town of Schleswig located on the Schley has a large cathredal, a quaint circular fishermens‘ village with small, colorful dwellings called Holm with a cemetery in the center. Just west of the city you will encounter a re-constructed Viking settlement called Haitabu with remakes of clay living quarters, community buildings and workshops where guides in traditional costumes show visitors how the Vikings weaved, knitted or made glass-like pearls. The outdoor museum and an indoor display is well worth a visit to experience the lives of the Vikings.
Hygge in Flensburg
The last stop along the Baltic Sea and only 5 kilometers to Denmark is the enchanting city of Flensburg. The city lies on the Flensburger Förde (fjord), has 89,000 inhabitants and is as vivid and exciting as can be. Due to strong ties with Denmark thoughout time, the city has a “hygge” flair, best translated as “free and easy” taken from Danish. There are astonishing wooden three or four mast ships and modern sailboats anchored in the harbor, surprisingly steep inclines (the state is normally rather flat), as well as a historic steamship “Alexandra” built in 1908 and currently under renovation.
The Schifffahrtsmuseum with an outdoor café invites you to a coffee with seagulls waiting for a treat, such as a traditional Backfischbrötchen (baked fish sandwich). The very long 1.9 km pedestrian zone is full of cafés, shops and a miriad of houses in various architectural styles next to each other. The Museumsberg on a hill overlooks the city, has a historical museum and a giant lion statue in its park. A stroll along the Kapitänsweg (captains’ way) will tell of stories about sailing the seven seas and a Rum Museum displays Flensburg’s hay day as leading rum importer.
A mini-cruise on the “Viking” will lead you past the German Marine School, astonishing houses on the water, a wharf, the Ochseninsel (Ox Islands) which belong to Denmark and seven beaches, often accompanied by an armada of sailboats racing the ship.
The voyage stops for a break at Glücksburg, the most northern city in Germany with 6,500 residents. The city has a water castle, a rose garden and has been a popular sea spa since the early 1900’s. Visitors are greeted by the very mondane “Strandhotel” opposite the peer. To round off your trip, try a sip of “Flensburger” beer brewed in the most northern brewery and served in a bottle with a “plop top.”
